Court Orders Musk to Provide Testimony on $44 Billion Twitter Acquisition
San Francisco — In an ongoing investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) into Elon Musk’s $44 billion purchase of Twitter, now known as X, a judge has ordered the Tesla and SpaceX CEO to testify for a third time. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler issued the order, giving Musk, his team, and the SEC a week to agree on a date and location for the testimony.
Resistance to Subpoena and Constitutional Challenge
During a court hearing last December, Beeler noted that Musk resisted the subpoena, claiming the SEC’s investigation was baseless and harassing. Musk argued that the subpoena exceeded the SEC’s authority as it was not issued by an authorized entity as required by the U.S. Constitution. Despite Musk’s objections, Beeler emphasized that the court is enforcing the SEC’s subpoena, deeming the testimony as “not unduly burdensome.”
New Evidence Emerges
Since Musk’s previous testimonies, the SEC has received “thousands of new documents” from various parties, including hundreds from Musk himself. The agency has been investigating the period leading up to Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, while the company was still publicly traded. As of now, the SEC has not concluded whether any federal securities laws were violated.
Background on Twitter Acquisition
After a protracted legal battle with Twitter’s previous leadership, Musk finalized the $44 billion deal to purchase and take Twitter private in October 2022. Initially agreeing to acquire Twitter in April of the same year, Musk attempted to withdraw from the deal, prompting the social media company to sue him to enforce the acquisition.
The SEC and Musk’s lawyer have not yet responded to requests for comments on this latest development.
